Yellowstone National Park is America’s first National Park and is often called the “American Safari.” It is well known for its many hot springs and geysers.
Yellowstone is one of the five Grand Nationals; which also include the Grand Canyon, Yosemite, Denali, and Glacier national parks.
June and July are peak tourist season for Yellowstone. Lodging and campsites either in the park or outside the park should be reserved no later than March or April. All the roads around Yellowstone are between 15 and 35 miles per hour, and they will be full of cars at this time of year. Consequently, a one-day trip may be untenable. However, if you stay close, you will be able to hit the priority attractions in two days.
It is important to consider how much walking is involved in Yellowstone. Although there is more hiking opportunity here than in most national parks, just walking around the attractions can be more than most do in a day. However, if you are only hitting the major attractions then you may spend more time in your car than in other national parks due to the distances to travel, traffic, and low speed limits. If you are going to hike, then be sure to bring bear spray!
Major Attractions
- Old Faithful Geyser – best viewed from the deck at Old Faithful Lodge
- Old Faithful Lodge – Oldest National Park Hotel
- Old Faithful Welcome Center – the Museum of Geyser Science
- Lower Yellowstone Falls – often called Yellowstone’s Niagara Falls
- Yellowstone Canyon – the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone
- Canyon Village Welcome Center – the Museum of the Yellowstone Caldera and Park Geography
- Grand Prismatic Hot Spring – the most spectacular multi-colored hot spring pool in the park
- Yellowstone Lake – a massive deep-water lake at the center of the park
- Mammoth Hot Springs – the broadest single geyser complex in the park
- Mammoth Village – the Park Headquarters Complex
There are three reasonably accessible entrances to Yellowstone from Lubrecht Experimental Forest: The North West Gate at Gardiner, MT; the West Gate at West Yellowstone, MT, and the North East Gate at Silver Gate, MT.
Lubrecht to the North West Gate of Yellowstone NP:
271 Miles, 4 Hours and 30 Minutes
From Lubrecht head East (R) on HYW 200 for 32 Miles (30 Minutes), then South (R, towards Helena) onto HWY 141 32 Miles (30 Minutes), then East (L, towards Helena, then Townsend, then Three Forks) on HWY 12 for 91 Miles (1 Hour 30 Minutes, There are several turns in Helena), then East (L) on I-90 for 52 Miles (1 Hour, towards Bozeman, then Livingston exit 333), then South (R) on HWY 89 for 53 Miles (1 Hour 30 Minutes, to Gardiner and the Yellowstone Gate).
The North West Gate (a.k.a., the North Gate) is the original gate to Yellowstone and was the only entrance into the park when “The West” was only accessible by rail in the 1800s. It is the location that Theodore Roosevelt traveled through when he visited Yellowstone, which led to the establishment of the National Park Service. The first attraction through the gate is Mammoth Hot Springs and Mammoth Village.
Things to see on the way to the North Gate
- Helena, MT – The State Capital, The State History Museum, Walking Mall on Last Chance Gulch (Main Street), The Gates of the Mountains, Hiking (e.g., the Continental Divide Trail)
- Three Forks, MT – The Trident (headwaters of the Missouri River), N Main Street, Lewis and Clark Caverns
- Bozeman, MT – Main Street, Museum of the Rockies, Hiking (e.g., the M trail)
- Livingston, MT – Main Street, Yellowstone Gateway Museum
Lubrecht to the West Gate of Yellowstone NP:
280 Miles, 4 Hours and 30 Minutes
From Lubrecht head West (L, towards Missoula) on HYW 200 for 25 Miles (30 Minutes), then East (L, towards Butte, then Cardwell exit 256) onto I-90 140 Miles (2 Hours), then South (R, towards Harrison) on HWY 359 for 15 Miles (15 Minutes), then South (R) on 287 for 100 Miles (1 Hour 45 Minutes, West Yellowstone and the Yellowstone Gate).
The West Gate was one of the earliest gates to Yellowstone. The dirt field on the western edge of town was once a dirt runway airport and was the entrance which the iconic yellow tour busses dispatched from and into the park in the early 1900s. The first major attraction through the West Gate is either the Grand Prismatic Spring if you turn south on the Grand Loop Rd, or Norris Geyser Basin if you turn north on the Grand Loop Rd. Norris Geyser is not a primary attraction, but a good spot to stop if you have time.
Things to see on the way to the West Gate
- Missoula, MT – N Higgins Ave (Main Street), Hiking (the M trail)
- Phillipsburg, MT – A little out of the way (27 miles south of Drummond on I-90), but a quaint tourist town, W Broadway Street (Main Street)
- Fairmont, MT – Montana’s largest hot springs resort
- Butte, MT – the Berkley Pit, the Mine Museum
- Cardwell, MT – Lewis and Clark Caverns
- Norris, MT – Norris Hot Springs: Montana’s most quaint hot springs swimming area
- Ennis, MT – A Montana Fishing Hub, E Main Street
- Virginia City – A little out of the way (15 miles west of Ennis), but a quaint tourist town, Montana’s original capital, E Wallace Street (Main Street)
- Big Sky, MT – A little more out of the way (50 miles north of West Yellowstone, 40 miles south of Belgrade near Bozeman), but an iconic mountain area in Montana
- Cameron, MT – Madison Slide and Earthquake Lake Visitor Center
Lubrecht to the North East Gate of Yellowstone NP:
406 Miles, 7 Hours
From Lubrecht head East (R) on HYW 200 for 32 Miles (30 Minutes), then South (R, towards Helena) onto HWY 141 32 Miles (30 Minutes), then East (L, towards Helena, then Townsend, then Three Forks) on HWY 12 for 91 Miles (1 Hour 30 Minutes, There are several turns in Helena), then East (L) on I-90 for 133 Miles (1 Hour, towards Bozeman, then Livingston, then to Big Timber, then to Columbus Exit 408), then South (R) on HWY 78 for 1 Mile and South on HWY 421 “Joliet Rd” for 18 miles (15 Minutes), then South (R, towards Red Lodge, then Beartooth HWY, then Cook City and the Yellowstone Gate) on HWY 212 for 89 miles (3 Hours).
The North West Gate is the newest gate and is famous for the Beartooth Highway, one of the highest mountain pass roads in the world, with exceptional views. Montana is a land of a thousand vista’s, and this one may be the best in the state. It is the least traveled park entrances, so traffic will light in comparison to other park entrances. The road from the north west gate to its nearest major park attraction is long. However, the plains along Grand Loop Road between Mammoth Hot Springs and Tower Junction is often full of bison mid-summer.
Things to see on the way to the North Gate
- Helena, MT – The State Capital, The State History Museum, Walking Mall on Last Chance Gulch (Main Street), The Gates of the Mountains, Hiking (e.g., the Continental Divide Trail)
- Three Forks, MT – The Trident (headwaters of the Missouri River), Lewis and Clark Caverns
- Bozeman, MT – E Main Street, Museum of the Rockies, Hiking (e.g., the M trail)
- Livingston, MT – Main Street, Yellowstone Gateway Museum
- Big Timber, MT – Timber Bar (excellent food and drink selection), McLeod Street (Main Street)
- Red Lodge, MT – Iconic Montana Town, S Broadway Ave (Main Street)
For more information check out https://www.visitmt.com/